TORONTO — They are the $500-million man and the injured pending-free-agent shortstop awaiting his payday. They are prized free-agent signings, a 41-year-old future Hall of Famer and a 22-year-old wunderkind who flew up five levels to shine in the playoffs. They are trade acquisitions, minor-league free agents, draft picks, an international signing serendipitously discovered while scouting a different player and a waiver claim. Together, they turned around the Toronto Blue Jays after an 88-loss 2024 season to win the American League East, beat the New York Yankees in the ALDS and push a riveting ALCS against the Seattle Mariners to seven games.
And then, just when it looked like they’d enjoyed the last of their comebacks in a season full of them, George Springer, still hobbled by the fastball off his kneecap in Game 5, conjured up yet another moment of October magic, sending an Eduard Bazardo sinker 381 feet to left field for a three-run homer as a crowd of 44,770 made Rogers Centre shake.
The seventh-inning drive — the latest entrant into the franchise’s pantheon of greatest moments alongside those featuring Joe Carter, Ed Sprague, Roberto Alomar, Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion — sent the Blue Jays to a nervy 4-3 win that secured their first trip to the World Series since the second of back-to-back championships in 1993.
Taking over after a scoreless seventh from Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt protected the lead Springer provided with a clean eighth before Jeff Hoffman, fresh off two innings to close out Sunday’s 6-2 win, struck out Leo Rivas, pinch-hitter Dominic Canzone and Julio Rodriguez, whose solo shot in the third off Shane Bieber had given Seattle a 2-1 lead, before being mobbed on the mound.
The Blue Jays host the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday night, when Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and old friend Teoscar Hernandez offer up their next and sternest test yet.
Their ecstasy was the Mariners’ agony, as they blew a 3-1 lead eight outs from their first-ever trip to the Fall Classic. It was a bit of revenge for the Blue Jays, who watched Seattle celebrate a two-game wild-card sweep on their field in 2022.
